Bread depanner



F. Lm. STEADMAN BREAD DEPANNER March 333%. 1954 Filed DGO. 24 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. /372//2/6' P Seial/n.472

March 30, 1954 R. P. STEADMAN BREAD DEPNNER 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Dec. 24 1951 m NJ www R Q w EH5- l WN@ n M WM NWN. m u M March 30, 1954 R. P. saaTEzAm/mm BREAD DEPANNER Filed Deo. 24, 1951 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 l@ W W QW l NN W dllrillllllllllu Patented Mar. 30, 1954 BREAD DErANNEn Rufus P. Steadman, Saginaw, Mich., assignor to Baker Perkins Inc., Saginaw, Mich., a corpora- .tion of New York Application December 24, 1951, Serial No. 263,063

4 Claims.

This invention relates generally to conveying apparatus and more particularly to bread depanners which receive pans of baked bread from the oven and automatically unload the loaves of bread from the pans and deliver the loaves and pans to separate conveyors which carry them away from the depanning apparatus.

It is an object of this invention to provide in a bread depanner a novel mechanism for inverting loaded pans so as to separate the bread from the pans and convey the pans and bread separately away from the depanning apparatus.

it is a still further object of this invention to provide in a depanner apparatus, a novel pan conveyor which receives loaded pans in an inverted position and permits the bread to pass downwardly therethrough to a separate bread conveyor, while conveying the empty pans'in a predetermined direction.

It is a still further object to provide an improved conveyor the aforementioned type for a bread depanner, in which flexible belts or V-belts are employed for receiving and conveying the inverted pans, so as to eliminate unnecessary and undesirable shocks, noise and possibleV pan damage, which is occasioned in devices using other types of conveyor elements; such as chains or rails.

It a still further object of this invention to provide in a bread depanner conveyor of the aforementioned type, means for adjusting the Spacing between the flexible conveyor belts, so that the conveyor can handle pans of diierent sizes and arrangements.

It is a still further'object of this invention to provide in a bread depanner of the aforementioned type, improved adjustable means forguiding the loaded pans, unloaded pans, and bread, during their course of travel through the depanning operation, so as to preventfany jamming of the pans or any damage to the bread loaves, and so as to maintain the pans and bread loaves in their proper predetermined positions to insure the eiiicient operation of the apparatus.

It is a still further object of this invention to provide a bread depanner which is durable in construction, automatic and eicient in operation, and which will automatically depan and handle bread loaves and pans in a more eiiicient manner than has been heretofore possible.

These and other objects of this invention will become apparent from the yfollowing detailed description, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, infwhich; Y

Figure 1 is a side elevational view, with parts A2v broken away in section, of the bread depanner apparatus of this invention;

Fig.v 2 is anenlarged end view, partially in section and partially in elevation, of the structure illustrated `in Figure 1, taken in the direction of the arrow 2 thereof;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 2, taken along the line 3 3 thereof;

Fig. 4 is a sectional view of the structure illustrated in Fig.'3, taken along the line 4 4 thereof Fig.r5 is a sectional view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 3, taken along the line 5 5 thereof; and

Fig. 6 is an enlarged sectional view of the structure illustrated in Fig. 5, taken along the line 6 6 thereof. l

Referring now to the drawings, it will be seen that the depannerapparatus includes a suitable supporting framework structure 1, including a base 9, and side supporting members II. A rst conveyor I3 is provided in the upper portion of the depanner apparatus and includes an endless belt I5, made of canvas or some other suitable material, which extends at itsl back end around a terminal pulley I'I, and'at its front end around an idler pulley I9 and a driving pulley 2I. The pulleys I'I, I9 and ZI are rotatably supported on the side plates I I by means of suitable shafts, and a take-up mechanism 23 is connected with the pulley I'I for controlling the tightness of the belt I5 and for permitting the belt to be loosened if it needs to be changed. The upper run of belt I 5 extends over a supporting or backing plate 25, which is connected with the depanner framework and which extends from a point adjacent the terminal pulley II to a joint vadjacent the driving pulley 2|, so that when pans 21 containing bread loaves 29 are conveyed by the belt I5 from the front of the machine toward the rear of the machine, or as viewed in Fig. 3, from right to left, the pans Will be properly supported during such movement.

The pans 21 are delivered to the conveyorv I3 after'the bread has been baked in an oven, and are normally disposed in a group relationship, as shown in Fig. 2. While the number of pans in any group may vary, as well as the sizes thereof, and while the pans may be interconnected by any suitable means, the pans 2l are illustrated in the drawings as being in a group of four, disposed in a side-by-side'spaced relationshiprand Winterconnected.by suitable strap meansI 3 I. `Tle pans are of the conventional type, having an open top with a peripheral bead 33 extending around the upper edge thereof.

A second conveyor 35 is disposed below the rst conveyor I3 and includes a pair of endless flexible V-belts 31 and 39 which are laterally spaced relative to each other. The V-belts 31 and 39 extend around an idler pulley 4I, in the form of an elongated cylindrical roller, which is rotatably supported on the depanner frame side members II, in any suitable manner, adjacent the back of the device. A suitable take-up mechanism 43 is connected with the pulley 4I at each side thereof, for controlling the tightness of the V-belts 31 and 39. The V-belts 31 and 39 extend around grooved pulley members 45 and 41, adjacent the front of the device. The pulleys 45 and 41 are formed with tangs or tongues which project slidably into grooves 49 formed in a laterally extending drive shaft 5I. The drive shaft 5I is rotatably sup-ported by the depanner framework and is adapted tobe driven by a suitable drive mechanism which will be hereinafter described.

A backing member 53, which includes opposed, longitudinally extending sheet metal troughlike portions 55, engages the upper and lower runs of the V-belts 31 and 39 to support and back the same, both on the lateral sides of the belts and on the inner face thereof. The troughlike portions 55 are interconnected by a vertical web portion 51 and adjacent each of the pulleys internally threaded nuts 59 and 60 are connected with the webs 51. A laterally extending rod 6l is rotatably supported in the depanner framework adjacent the opposite ends of the conveyor 35. Each of the rods 6I includes a right hand threaded portion 63, and a left hand threaded portion 65. The threaded portions B3 and 55 are threadably connected with the nuts 59 and 69 respectively, and a hand wheel 64 is connected to one of the rods BI exteriorly of the depanner framework side members II. The other rod BI is turned in unison by means of a pair of sprockets on each rod and connected by a chain. By turning the hand wheel 64 in one direction or the other, the nuts 59 and 60 will be moved toward or away from each other due to the opposite hands of the threads 63 and t5. Such movement of the nuts will cause the V-belts to move toward or away from each other. The V-belts will merely slide toward or away from each other on the pulley 4I, while at the opposite end of the conveyor sheet metal fork members 35, which are connected with the nuts 59 and 59 adjacent to the drive shaft 5|, straddle the drive shaft adjacent the pulleys 45 and 41 so that movement of the nuts at the front end. of the conveyor will cause the pulleys 45 and 41 to slide relative to the drive shaft and thereby adjust the spacing between the V-belts. The adjusting mechanisms are provided to permit the spacing between the V-belts to` be varied so that the conveyor 35 may handle pans of different sizes or arrangements in a manner that will be hereafter brought out.

When the loaded pans 21 are conveyed by the first conveyor I3 toward the rear of the machine they will drop or Vfall from the rear end of the conveyor I3 as they pass over the terminal pulley I1. The distance between the terminal pulley I1 and the upper run of the second conveyor 35 is preferably less than the length of the pans 21, so that when the pans pass over the terminal pulley I1 the forward ends thereof will drop onto the upper run of the conveyor V- belts 31 and 39, as shown in Fig. 3, while the opposite ends of the pans engage the baci; end of the conveyor I3. The upper runs of the V- belts 31 and 39 move in a direction from the back to the front of the depanner, or as viewed in Fig. 3, from left to right, so as to move in a direction opposite to the direction of movement of the iirst conveyor I3. Therefore, when the forward ends of the pans 21 drop ontoI and engage the V-belts 31 and 39, the movement of the V-belts toward the front of the depanner will cause the pans to move and be inverted to an upside down position as shown in Fig. 3. As the pans move to this inverted upside down position, the V-belts engage the strap 3l, which interconnects the pans, and the beads 33 on the adjacent pans prevent sidewise movement of the pans relative to the belts. In the illustrated embodiment, and as can be seen in Fig. 4, the V- belts are spaced to engage the strap 3I between the inner edges of the outer two pans and the outer edges of the inner two pans, so that the outer pans, or the pans at each end of the group are disposed outwardly of the V-belts, while the two inside pans are disposed inwardly oi the V-belts.

It should be noted that the V-belts engage the straps 3I only and do not contact the loaves of bread in the pans, and are therefore out of interfering relationship with the loaves of bread so that when the pans move to their inverted position the loaves of bread can drop or fall from the pans downwardly beyond the V-belts 31 and 39. By properly adjusting the spacing of the V-belts 31 and 33 in accordance with the spacing of the pans, this proper engagement can be effected so that the pans will be supported by the V-belts out of interfering relationship with the loaves or bread. It should also be noted that the terminal roller I1 of the rst conveyor I3 is disposed above the second conveyor 35 and intermediate the ends of the conveyor 35, so that when the pans drop from the first conveyor to the second conveyor they engage the upper run of the second conveyor between the opposed pulleys. Due to the fact that the second conveyor 35 employs V-belt type conveying elements, the shock imparted to the pans and bread, when the same are dropped from the rst conveyor, is reduced. Similarly, as these V-belts are generally leather or rubber, there is no appreciable noise when the pans strike the V-belts, such as would be the case if chains or rail type conveyors were used. Because the bread pans are normally silicon glazed, the bread will fall from the pans downwardly beyond the conveyor 35 when the pans are inverted. However, if for some reason the bread should stick in the pans the pulleys and 41 at the forward end of the conveyor 35 are of a large enough diameter to permit the loaded pans, in their inverted position, to pass over the drive shaft 49 without the bread so that the bread can be removed at a later time from the pans, by hand if necessary.

A third conveyor 61 is disposed below the second conveyor 35 in a position to receive the loaves of bread 29 which drop downwardly through the second conveyor 35 from the pans 21. The conveyor E1 may be of any suitable type and is shown as being of the suitable belt type in which a belt 69 extends around pulleys 1I and 13 adjacent opposite ends thereof. The pulley 13 is thel conveyor driving pulley and llre WiSe lis the terminal pulley over which the bread a-,fevegese 5 isl conveyed as` the upper run?- oftheconveyor moves from the back of the machine toward the front thereof, or as viewed in Fig. 3, from left to right. The empty'pansjtherefore, are conveyed by the conveyor 35 while the bread which drops below the conveyor 35 is received on and separately conveyed by the conveyor 61.

As the bread is conveyed by the conveyor belt 69 over the terminal pulley 13, its forward end drops onto an arcuate sheet metal sheet or slide 15, down which the loaves of bread slide in their upright position onto a conveyor 19, of any suitable type. The conveyor 19 then carries the loaves of bread 29 away from the depanner apparatus, in any desired direction. Simultaneously, the empty pans 21 which are carried by the second conveyor 35, pass over the pulleys 41 and 45 on the drive shaft 49, inthe same manner as the loaves oi bread pass over the pulleys 13. The pans drop.. from the conveyor 35 into a canvas sheet or slidel, and slide down the slide 8| onto a conveyor 83, which carries the pans away from the depanner device. The conveyor 83 Ymay be of any suitable type and generally is of the same type as the yconveyor 19. The conveyors 19 and 83 are illustrated as being of a suitable belt type wherein the belts 35 thereof pass around pulleys, one of which is driven by a suitable motor to operate the conveyor. A baffle .81. is supported on the depanner framework adjacent the forward end of the second conveyor 35 and the slide 8| to Ainsure the proper turning. of the pans as they pass from the conveyor 35 down the chute and to insure that the pans will be in their upright position.

The bread slide 15. is supported at its upper end on a rod or pipe'89 ,which in turn is supported on the depanner'framework side members in longitudinally elongated slots 9|. The upper end of the pan slide 8| is similarly supported by a rod or pipe 93 lonl the side lframe members through anA elongated slot 95. The rod or pipe members -93'andV 89 are interconnected by means of a rigid platelike member 91, which has ratchet teeth 99 formed on a portion 'of the under side thereof.v The ratchet teeth 99 mesh with -complemental teeth on. a sli-de |l, which is suitably supported on the -depanner side frame members. An adjusting mechanism which includes a hand wheel |03, see Fig.'2, is provided so that by actuation of `the hand wheel |03L the slide |0| can bemoved fore and aft to thereby move the member 91 and the'slide supporting rods or pipes 93 and 89 fore and aft in their respective slots inthe. -depanner framework, to thereby vary the position of the slides 15 and 8| relative to the terminal pulleys.` of their respective conveyors.4 This adjustment of both slides is effective simultaneously -because if longer loavesgof bread` are' employed, longer pans are employed, and conversely. Therefore, the slides canbeA adjusted to be in the proper position to receive the bread and pans from the conveyors B1 and 35 respectively, so that the bread and pans will slide in their upright position down the slides 15 and 8| respectively. In order to .lock the .slide |0| in a predetermined position' and prevent `undesired' ri'lovernent.V there'cf,"an actuatable lock'element' |05 isprovided. l

In order to'drive the conveyors |3, 35 and 31, a motor is provided, thek outputfshaft of which carries"a"sproclt around which v'a chain |3 extends. The chain ||3 extends upwardly from the motor I and around a sprocket H5 which is connected with the first conveyor drive pulley 2|. Thechain extends around the sprocket ||5 and downwardly around an idler sprocket |1. The chain then extends upwardly around a sprocket H9, which is connected with the second conveyor driveshaft 49 for driving the same, and thence back down around the motor sprocket. Thus an endless chain is provided for driving the first and second conveyors. A chain |2| also connects the drive shaft 49 of the second conveyor with the drive shaft for the pulley 13 of the conveyor 51, so as to drive the pulley 13 andthe conveyor belt 89. Thus the motor drivesv the conveyors I3, 35 and 31 with the conveyor |3 moving in an opposite directionv to the conveyors 35 and 51. The pan conveyor 83 is shown as being driven by a motor |29 which is connected with the drive shaft of the conveyor 83 by a suitable chain |3| A similar motor, not shown, is provided for driving the bread conveyor 19. This motor operates the conveyor 13, inthe same manner that the motor |29 operates conveyor 83.

When the loaded pans move along the first conveyor I3 and are invertedand drop onto the second conveyor 35, so that the bread falls onto the third conveyor 51, it is important that the pans and bread be properly guided during this depanning operation to insure that the pans will drop onto the il-belts 31 and 39, so that the V-belts will engagev the pans, as previously described, and be out of interfering relationship with the bread loaves, and so that the bread will drop into proper position on the conveyor 31 and will not be turned or cocked. To accomplish this a guide plate |35 is provided adjacent each side of the conveyors i3, 35 and 61 adjacent the rear of the machine. The guide plates |35 are supported on the side depanner frame members and are adjustable laterally relative to the conveyors so as to accommodate varicus sizes of pans and so as to closely guide the pans and bread through the depanning operation. Connected with the side frame members l l are upwardly extending platelike brackets |31 which hav-e extending therebetween, above the guide plates |35, a rod or shaft |39. Connected with the guide plates |35 and projecting upwardly therefrom are brackets |4| which carry rollers |43 which in turn roll on the cross shaft |39. A laterally extending adjusting screw |35 is supported on the side frame members and has an exteriorly disposed hand wheel |41. The ad justing screw |45 is similar to the adjusting screws 6| previously described and has threaded portions of the opposite hand which are threadably connected with the opposite guide plates |35, so that upon actuation of the hand -wheel in one direction or the other, the guide plates will be moved toward or away from each other to properly guide and accommodate the pans irrespective of the width or size thereof. Such movement of the guide plates is permitted by the rolling engagement of the rollers |43 on the supporting cross rod |39. The forward ends of each of the guide plates |35 are flared outwardly at |54v tov provide a suitable entrancefor the pans between the guide plates, anda reinforcingor stiffening' ange |53 extends around the guide plates to stiien the same. In order to main tain the pans on the conveyor I3, during their initial movement therealong, guide rails |55 are provided. on opposite sides of the conveyor i3. The guide rails arey pivotally or hingedly connected at |51 to the guide plates |35 by any suitable means, and the forward ends of the guide rails 55 are connected with the depanner frame side members at |59 through a slotted connection, so that when the guide plates l35 are adjusted inwardly or outwardly they can pivot relative to the guide rails |55 at |51 and the slotted connection 59 of the guide rails with the depanner frame members allows the guide rails to move fore and aft relative to the frame members to accommodate such pivotal movement at the rear ends of the guide rails. The guide plates 135, as can be best seen in Fig. 3, extend downwardly so as to provide a guide for the first, second and third conveyors, and the lower ends of the guide plates terminate adjacent the upper run of the conveyor 6l. act to insure the proper guidance of the pans and bread through the depanning operation, the engagement of the pans with the V-belts, and the receiving of the bread loaves on the conveyor 6l.

it will thus be seen that a completely automatic depanner apparatus is provided, which is adapted to accommodate bread loaves and pans or" different lengths, sizes and arrangements, and which is not noisy in operation because of the use of flexible V-belts, and likewise in which the life of the pans and the conveyors is extended because shock during the depanning operation is materially reduced or eliminated. The depanning apparatus of this invention is thus exceptionally eiiicient in operation, has great durability and life, and is simple in construction.

What is claimed is:

l. In an apparatus for unloading bread loaves from pans having an open top, conveyor means for conveying loaded pans in a predetermined lineal direction, second conveyor means disposed below said first conveyor means and including spaced apart iieXible belts extending endlessly around opposite pulley means, means for driving said flexible belts in a direction opposite to that of said first conveyor means, said first conveyor means terminating at one end above said second conveyor means and intermediate the ends thereof so that loaded pans will drop from said first conveyor means onto said second conveyor means, the movement of which will cause the pans to invert and be supported on said iiexible belts in an upside down position, said flexible belts being spaced .so as to engage the pans and be out of interiering relationship with the bread loaves, so that the loaves can drop from the pans downwardly beyond said second conveyor means, and third conveyor means disposed below said second conveyor means for receiving the loaves which drop from t .e pans.

in an apparatus for unloading bread loaves from pans having an open top, conveyor means for conveying loaded pans in a predetermined lineal direction, second conveyor me-ans disposed below said rst conveyor means and including spaced apart flexible belts extending endlessly around opposite pulley means, means for driving .iexible belts in a direction opposite to that of said irst conveyor means, said first conveyor means terminating at one end above said second conveyor means and intermediate the ends thereof so that loaded pans will drop from said rst conveyor means onto said second conveyor means,

the movement of which will cause the pans to 7 invert and be supported on said flexible belts in an upside down position, said iiexible belts being spaced so as to engage the pans and be out of Thus the guide plates interfering relationship with the bread loaves, so that the loaves can drop from the pans downwardly beyond said second conveyor means, means for adjusting the positions of the flexible belts relative to each other so as to permit said conveyor means to accommodate pans of various sizes and arrangements.

3. In an apparatus for unloading bread loaves from pans having an open top, conveyor means for conveying loaded pans in a predetermined lineal direction, second conveyor means disposed below said rst conveyor means and including spaced apart V-belts extending endlessly around opposite pulley means, means for driving said V- belts in a direction opposite to that of said iirst conveyor means, said rst conveyor means terminating at one end above said second conveyor means and intermediate the ends thereof so that loaded pans will drop from said first conveyor means onto said second conveyor means, the movement of which will cause the pans to invert and be supported on said V-belts in an upside down position, said V-belts being spaced so as to engage the pans and be out of interfering relationship with the bread loaves, so that the loaves can drop from the pans downwardly beyond said second conveyor means, means for adjusting the positions of the V-belts relative to each other so as to permit said conveyor means to accommodate pans of various sizes and arrangements.

fi. In apparatus for unloading bread loaves from pans having an open top, a first belt conveyor including a belt extending around spaced apart pulley means, a second belt conveyor disposed below said rst belt conveyor, means for driving said iirst belt conveyor in one direction and s id second belt conveyor in an opposite direction, said first belt conveyor terminating at one end above and intermediate the ends of said second belt conveyor so that loaded pans conveyed by said first belt conveyor will drop onto said second belt conveyor and the movement of said second belt conveyor Will cause said pans to be inverted to an upside dovvn position, said second belt conveyor inl, cluding a pair of flexible belts spacedV apart to engage the pans and be out of interfering relationship With the bread loaves so that the loaves can drop from the pans downwardly beyond the belts, guide plate means disposed adjacent opposite sides r.of the terminal end of said rst conveyor means and the portion of said second conveyor means disposed therebelow, said guide plate means being supported for lateral movement relative to said conveyor means and to each other, and means for `adjusting the lateral positions of said guide plate means to accommodate pans of various sizes and arrangements so that the pans will be properly guided during their movement along the terminal end of said first conveyor means and the portion Vof said second conveyor means disposed therebelow.

RUFUS P. STEADMAN.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 456,336 Paris July 2l, 1391 1,497,438 Gottschalk June 19, i924 2,172,685 Thompson Sept. 12, 1939 2,378,948 Paxton et al June 25, 1945 2,524,656 Eyster Oct. 3, 1950 

